‘Militia control Kutum in North Darfur’: residents

The residents of Kutum in North Darfur describe the security situation in the locality as “extremely bad”. Owing to the absence of police and the judiciary, militiamen are committing crimes with complete impunity. A Kutum town resident told Radio Dabanga that there is no security at all in the locality. “There are no police and security forces. Even the court disappeared from Kutum nearly two years ago. This situation enabled the militias to continue abusing the citizens inside Kutum town and in the villages in the neighbourhood.” Residents of Kassab and Fata Borno camps confirm the total insecurity in the locality. “The government-backed militias are in absolute control of the area. They assault citizens, the displaced, villagers, and farmers on an almost daily basis, while the authorities are nowhere to be seen. They attack people collecting firewood and straw, beating and whipping them. Women are raped, and they release their livestock onto farmland by force of arms.” File photo